Judge says drink and flying don't mix

AMID mounting concern over air rage incidents, a British judge has criticised the airline Virgin Atlantic following a confrontation after cabin crew sold alcohol to an unruly, drunken passenger.

The incident happened during a transatlantic flight from Orlando to Manchester last August. Julie Adams, 44, was allowed to buy a bottle of duty-free Champagne, despite having earlier been banned from drinking after causing a fracas, the court heard. Soon afterwards, Mrs Adams became violent as five crew members tried to grab the bottle from her.

At Minshull Street Crown Court in Manchester last week, Mrs Adams admitted interfering with the performance of an aircraft and common assault. Sentence was deferred for six months.

During the hearing, it emerged that she had been demanding to be served alcohol from the moment she boarded.

Judge Barry Woodward questioned why Virgin Atlantic staff had served Mrs Adams with Champagne after other cabin crew had given a warning about her conduct. He said: "If they are going to serve alcohol on planes, people are going to get drunk. What on earth do they expect? It seems to me this type of situation could be avoided if there was a review of the distribution and provision of alcohol."

David Friesner, prosecuting, said that, soon after boarding, Mrs Adams, who lives in St Helens, Merseyside, had consumed a small bottle of wine and a small bottle of Bailey's Irish Cream. She carried on drinking from a litre bottle of Bailey's that she had bought from the in-flight duty-free service.

She subsequently fell asleep, and staff, concerned about her behaviour, confiscated the remaining Bailey's. When she awoke, she demanded it back and became abusive. Mr Friesner said Mrs Adams was told to go back to her seat and she appeared to calm down. She was told that she would not be served any more alcohol.

Three hours into the flight, however, Mrs Adams was allowed to buy a bottle of Champagne from the duty-free service, the court heard. An air stewardess intervened when she saw her trying to open the bottle.

In the ensuing struggle, five crew members and a passenger tried to subdue Mrs Adams as she kicked with both feet and lashed out with one hand, while holding the Champagne bottle in the other. During the tussle, the cork blew off the bottle and nearby passengers were sprayed with Champagne. The court heard that the staff who sold the Champagne to Mrs Adams may not have known of the entire incident.

Guy Mathieson, defending, said his client had a history of domestic troubles and manic depression. He added: "She is ashamed and embarrassed, and wishes to apologise to the cabin crew and passengers."

A spokesman for Virgin Atlantic said that duty-free alcohol sold during flights was not intended for consumption on board and that such air rage cases were "incredibly rare".

The case highlights one of the important factors behind the increase in the number of air rage incidents: the serving of alcohol during flights. Some health professionals are calling for a ban.

Dr Graham Lucas, a consultant psychiatrist, told a conference at the Royal Society of Medicine in London in January that simply limiting the number of drinks served on flights might not be enough. Passengers who had been served two or three drinks could become aggressive if they were denied further alcohol. "Unpopular as it would be with all of us, the time has come to consider the complete ban of serving alcohol on flights," he said.

Airlines have dismissed such calls. Virgin Atlantic said it would "not be practical". British Airways said an alcohol ban would spoil flights for the majority of passengers. A spokesman for the Department of Transport said a ban was unlikely because it would mean also banning the sale of alcohol in duty-free shops and all other outlets at airports, where it was a major source of revenue.

A recent survey revealed that the number of air rage incidents is rising sharply, with one in five cabin crew on a major British airline having been physically attacked by a passenger at least once. Drunkenness was seen as a major cause.

Many Daily Telegraph readers have written in to complain about personal experiences of unruly passengers who had been served too much alcohol during their flights.